Contemporary small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and micro air vehicles (MAV) generally fall into two classes: airplane-like craft optimized for cruising long distances, and helicopter-like craft optimized for hover and tight maneuvering. The class of hover-capable MAV is differentiated primarily by how attitude-correcting moments and forces are generated. Traditional helicopters employ auxiliary servo actuators and a complex swashplate mechanism to actively change the angle of attack of the main propeller through every revolution, a strategy referred to as ‘cyclic control.’ The cost and mechanical complexity of that traditional mechanism is one of the principle factors driving researchers towards “quadrotor” craft, which trade the one complicated propeller for four simple propellers.
An alternative to the complex swashplate mechanism is desired that offers similar capabilities but with fewer moving components. The invention addresses this and other needs in the art.